The present invention relates to a cap/plug closure for sealably closing the opening of a bottle.
When a bottle containing a beverage "carbonated" with carbon dioxide gas or other dissolved gas has its temperature raised or when it is moved about in a user's hand, the internal pressure within the bottle may be elevated, causing a plug closing the mouth of the bottle to become disengaged with the result that the carbon dioxide or other gas dissolved in the beverage escapes. To prevent such an accident, an external annular protrusion (hereinafter "rib") is formed at a position in the vicinity of the mouth of the bottle, e.g. a bottle for a champagne or the like, and a wire is wrapped around the neck of the bottle below the rib and around the plug to retain the plug within the bottle.
In the case of a wine, a portion of the bottle, including the mouth sealed with a plug and a part of the neck, is covered with a metallic cap.
The above type seal presents the danger that a user's finger may be injured by the wire when the latter is disengaged from the bottle. In addition, in packaging, since the placing of the wire on the neck of the bottle is by hand, assembly is time-consuming and expensive.
With a bottle having its mouth and plug covered with a metallic cap, there is the danger that a user's finger may be injured by the metallic cap when the latter is disengaged or removed from the bottle. Additionally, since the mouth of the bottle is closed with a metallic cap, the cost of the bottle is increased and, moreover, the metallic cap represents a waste injurious to the environment.